Fair Weather Cyclist?

[Pedal Wench]

Cold, yes. Rain, no way. Actually, my rule is to never start a ride in the rain or on wet roads. Obviously, if I'm caught out in the rain, I'll ride home. And, I don't do a ride that's not going to get above 38 degrees.

[SnappyPix]

Oooh, I'm starting to feel less wimpy now!
Thank you!

[lph]

I commute year round. My commuter bike is a mess

I won't take my road bike out in the rain though.

[mimitabby]

I live in Seattle. I will ride in dark & cold, but not dark & wet.
During the day; if it's already raining, i probably won't ride (but i might) I have lots of wet weather gear so if it's a long ride and MIGHT rain, I'm prepared.
We have to ride in the cold & rain, because that can happen for 5 months !

[onimity]

It is snowing here, snowed several inches overnight. I rode in to work and had a surprisingly good ride; The paths and roads were mucky but not bad, everything else was absolutely beautiful and white. The air was crisp and I was nice and warm in my layers upon layers of winter gear. And then I came to the big, steep hill right below my office and realized that my front derailleur cable was enclosed in an icicle. No small chainring for me. But other than that it was a lovely ride.

Anne

[Voodoo Sally]

I used to balk at commuting in dark, rain, and cold. But this year I'm turning over a new leaf. I don't know why, but my "project" has become to ride through the winter. So, it's an ongoing learning process, with many "firsts" lately. First I started riding home in the dark this summer. That was fine. Then I tried riding in the rain. With the right clothes that was fine. And lately it's been cold, so I've been figuring that out, with good results.

Yesterday was a banner day, though. It snowed a little here yesterday morning, and I thought, here goes nothing. I put on some waterproof clothes and hit the road. The slush in the shoulders kind of sucked, but when I could I rode in the roadway. Then I hit the "mountain biking" part of my commute. I do use slick tires, and with some skills usually I'm fine on the dirt. But the inch of snow on top of the thick oak leaves proved too much for my front tire. I fought the slippage as best I could, but twice the front wheel got away from me and I went body surfing on the ground. Oops! Live and learn. I'm putting some semi-knobbies on ASAP.

My ride home (after dark) was very "adventurous", too. It had gotten hopelessly foggy. So there I was, in the fog, in the dark. At least the snow was gone. My bike and body were lit up very well, and I'm sure that's the ONLY way any motorists saw me.

As for cleaning my bike, that's the downside. I do like to keep my steed clean, and therefore I have been slaving over it lately, cleaning it more often as the weather deteriorates.

[SnappyPix]

Deep respect to everyone who continues to battle on, despite the weather.
I used to commute in all weathers, but now work from home, so my hardy streak has fizzled out completely!

After one particularly nasty winter, spending more time on my backside than in the saddle, I gave up ice skating on 2 wheels and decided that snow and ice were no-go weather.

But the inch of snow on top of the thick oak leaves proved too much for my front tire. I fought the slippage as best I could, but twice the front wheel got away from me and I went body surfing on the ground. Oops! Live and learn. I'm putting some semi-knobbies on ASAP.

Not sure if it's true, but I always understood slicks to be better on snow and ice as there's more tyre contact with the ground than knobblies or treads.
I guess it depends how fresh or compacted the snow is.

[OakLeaf]

Cold, yes. Rain, no way. Actually, my rule is to never start a ride in the rain or on wet roads. Obviously, if I'm caught out in the rain, I'll ride home. And, I don't do a ride that's not going to get above 38 degrees.

Pretty much identical for me, except you're more cold tolerant. I might start in 38 degrees, but if that was going to be the max, I'd stay in bed. Once when I was in college, I hit black ice and wrapped my front wheel around the forks. That was enough for me.

[Dianyla]

Dark? No problem. Cold? Not much of a problem. Light Rain? Don't like it, but will do it. Heavy Pelting Rain? Starting to feel wimpy.

30+ mph winds, especially combined with heavy rain? Yeah, that's a problem. I don't even like to get out of bed on mornings when I can hear a storm beating on the windows, let alone commute by bike.

[DirtDiva]

I'm a bit like limewave when it comes to riding in crap weather.

Mtb: bring it on!!!

Commute: well, it's still better than driving to work, innit?

Roadie: *whine*